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  • Mankato West senior Lauren Makela chases down a ball at the baseline on the way to a straight-set victory at No. 1 singles. John Cross

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September 6, 2012

Scarlets adjust to blank Austin 7-0

By Jim Rueda Free Press Sports Editor

MANKATO — Don’t tell Mankato West girls tennis coach Adam Doll that depth is overrated.

On Thursday, the Scarlets No. 1 singles player, Andrea Erdman, had to miss a Big Nine Conference meet for personal reasons. That forced Doll to move his other three singles players up and insert Kendra Allen into the No. 4 position.

West responded to the adjustment, winning all seven matches in straight sets for a 7-0 triumph over Austin at the West courts. One of the straight-set winners was Lauren Makela, who replaced Erdman at first singles.

Makela took on Alicia Sforza, who had an unorthodox style, and won 7-5, 6-2. Sforza used a lot of cuts and slices to move Makela around the court before trying to hit the ball hard to win the point.

“It was a little different,” Makela said. “Once I figured it out, I adjusted my strategy and started winning more points.”

Makela said her major adjustment was to take some pace off her own shots, which forced Sforza to try to overpower the ball, often hitting it out.

Makela has been playing organized tennis since seventh grade. She started at the same time as Justine Scheller, and the two have been teammates ever since.

“I just thought it would be a fun sport to play,” Makela said. “I had a sister who played for awhile.”

The senior said she’s become more consistent with her strokes from a year ago which has enabled her to hit the ball harder this season. She is also working a lot on her mental game.

“After the match, coach Doll and I talked about confidence,” she said. “He wants me to stay positive. If you believe you can win, then it gives you a much better chance to actually win.”

West’s meet-clinching match Thursday came from the No. 3 doubles team of Meaghan Haley and Melissa Lager. The duo downed Grace Gravelle and Maggie Leif 6-0, 6-1.

Miranda Wynkoop and Scheller combined to win 6-2, 6-0 at first doubles, and Kelsey Klingel and Emily Smith won 6-2, 6-0 at second doubles.

In singles play, Julia Snelson (No. 2), Maddy Valentine (No. 3) and Allen (No. 4) were the straight-set winners.

West (5-3, 3-2 in Big Nine) is back in action Saturday at the Waseca Invitational.

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